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Dying in Vain

“…and finally we have the rack of wild boar. Sauced with a porcini mushroom demiglaze and served over vegetable risotto, it’s the best dish of the night,” I say, concluding my recitation of the specials.

“Wow,” my customer, a portly man in his late fifties, exhales. “I’ll have that!”

“It’s perfect,” the man says, his eyes glazed over with pleasure. “I’m glad I listened to you.”

“Thank you sir,” I sigh contentedly.

My customer’s enjoying himself and another large tip’s coming my way. Believe it or not, in spite of my diatribes against sociopathic Yuppies, I really enjoy helping customers order a good meal. I am, after all, in the business of making people happy.

I’m quickly sat a new table. I get them drinks and tell them the specials. Once again I sell the wild boar.

The kitchen guys look at the plate and shake their heads. Ordering $30 entrées is usually beyond their budget. It’s usually beyond mine too.

“Anyone want some?” I ask.

It’s overcooked but the guy only took two bites. The guys take a pass. No one wants overcooked meat. I look at the rack of boar sadly. It was once part a living thing. It had a mother. It breathed, ate, and felt. Now it’s trash. Its flesh could have fed someone else. But it won’t. Food should never be wasted – even by people who can afford to throw it away. It’s just disrespectful to life in general. Cursing I throw the wild boar into the garbage.

With something like that, i’m surprised you don’t just cook it medium rare to begin with no matter what the customer says. The worst that could happen is he sends it back for more cooking, but at least there would be a chance he’d eat it (and pay for it).

I understand if you eat meat well done for health reasons but to prefer it that way?

The reason so many think pork is so dry is because they cook it like its chicken. You can, and should, eat pork medium. Medium well? Okay, I can live with that. But well done? Do I look like a shoemaker to you?

Worse is when its a thick cut of meat that takes forever. Rack of lamb well done can take damn near an hour if you don’t push it.
Fillets are nearly as bad if you don’t butterfly it.

I’m not a pork eater, but when ever I have a steak it’s always well done because I do like it that way. Though had I been there I would have tried what the waiter suggested…I don’t understand why people wouldn’t try to take the advice of someone who’s serving this food every day?